• Gachagua said he was brought up to be loyal to his friends, his boss and his compatriots.
• “William Ruto, my boss and my friend, if you shall get problems from anybody, it will never come from this family,” Gachagua affirmed.
Image: ANDREW KASUKU
Kenya Kwanza running mate Rigathi Gachagua has assured Deputy President William Ruto of his unwavering loyalty should they form the next government after the August 9 polls.
Rigathi dismissed unfounded fears from some quarters that he would cause problems for the DP once in office.
“You know I heard some people say that if William Ruto picks Rigathi Gachagua as his running mate, Rigathi Gachagua is very strong and he (Ruto) could have problems like the ones we are having with Uhuru Kenyatta,” Gachagua said.
“Such a problem cannot come from a member of this family. I’m a man who was in inform, mine is yes sir! Yes sir! Yes sir!,” Gachagua said.
The Mathira MP underwent paramilitary training in 1990 where recruits are taught to obey orders without question.
After the training, he served as a District Officer in Nakuru.
Besides, Gachagua said he was brought up to be loyal to his friends, his boss and his compatriots.
“Therefore, you shall have nothing but total support and loyalty from Rigathi Gachagua because that is the way he has been brought up. If you were brought up well you do not change when you are 57.
“William Ruto, my boss and my friend, if you shall get problems from anybody, it will never come from this family,” Gachagua affirmed.
He spoke on Tuesday during his late brother James Reriani’s funeral in Nyeri.
Reriani died on May 7, 2022, aged 78 years.
Gachagua said he considers Ruto as his brother and part of the Gachagua family for the numerous times the DP has stood with the Gachagua family during hard times.
He cited their late father’s death in 2014, their mother’s death in 2020 and now Reriani’s death.
“He who buries your father, he who comes to bury your mother, he who buries your brother that is your friend,” Gachagua said.
In further emphasizing his unwavering allegiance to Ruto, the first time legislator revealed that at the height of trouble in his political career, someone challenged him to abandon Ruto but he stuck to his guns.
“I said no, William Ruto is my brother. Did he say how? He’s a brother by association,” Gachagua said.
“Don’t listen to people who have never come near you when you are in trouble, to tell you about those who are always with you.”
The remarks were in reference to the numerous times he has been hauled in court in relation to graft cases.
Gachagua is currently facing Sh7.5 billion graft case over alleged economic crimes.
He used the occasion to also defend Ruto from claims that he has been causing problems for President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The running mate designate said the problem between the president did not come from the DP whom he described as an honest man.
“William Ruto is an honest man, and he is a good man and he keeps his word,” Gachagua said.
Ruto settled on Gachagua as his running mate on Sunday after 17 hours of deliberations at his Karen residence.
Rigathi and Tharaka Nithi senator Kithure Kindiki had been touted as the best fit to deputise Ruto at the August polls.